Somali Men Fail In Attempt To Hijack Plane

2 Somali Men With Guns Fail In Attempt To Hijack Plane Over Somalia

(AP)  MOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) - A Somali airline official says two men have failed in an attempt to hijack an airplane.

Diallo Airlines marketing manager Ahmed Yare says the men drew guns on Monday's flight. He says some of the 30 passengers thwarted the hijackers by challenging them.

The plane returned to the northeastern Somali town of Bosasso, where the men tried to escape. Police arrested the men after a gunbattle that wounded one hijacker.

Yare says no passengers were hurt. The plane was not damaged and resumed its flight to neighboring Djibouti.

The hijacking underscores Somalia's lawlessness. The east African country has lacked an effective central government since 1991, when warlords overthrew longtime dictator Mohamed Siad Barre before turning on each other.